rampant curiosity--how do you waste time?

I waste a lot of time here, obviously.I have recently taken up the hobby of knitting, which I am not sure could be considered a waste of time as I actually do produce useful things like hats, scarves, sweaters, and the like, in the end.I putter in the kitchen for fun, of course, which is also generally productive in that it keeps me and Zhimbo fed.I read a bit, watch TV a bit, listen to music a bit, go to movies and watch them at home. I like to travel when I can afford it. Oh, and PC based RPG games can become obsessive.I also like to encourage the breakdown of the traditional family and snatch all the little children I can lure to me in order to totrure them into renouncing their faith in Christ.Pretty mundane, really.This message has been edited by schrafinator, 11-20-2005 10:38 AM

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Reading, writing, drinking.

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"Drinking" is a hobby?No wonder you think life is meaningless.

People who drink a lot also tend to spend a lot of their time drunk.Being drunk (and hung over) all of the time doesn't tend to lead a person to having a great deal of ambition, or to feeling particularly good, in general, about life. This is not an absolute, of course, but it's very easy to use alcohol as a crutch or an escape from one's issues and problems, and thus never deal with them satisfactorally.Believe me, I can tell the difference between my coworkers who drink all the time and those who don't.

I hoist a pint (or more) with my pals maybe once every two weeks; I have hobbies that I pursue less frequently than that. Maybe RR's just really enthusiastic about beers, wines, and liquors.I would think a professional gormand like yourself would see a kindred spirit in that.

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I guess I understood his use of "hobby" to refer to the enthusiasm with which he pursued that evocation, not the frequency that he did so.

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I hoist a pint (or more) with my pals maybe once every two weeks; I have hobbies that I pursue less frequently than that. Maybe RR's just really enthusiastic about beers, wines, and liquors.

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I would think a professional gormand like yourself would see a kindred spirit in that.

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Well, maybe. When someone really loves wines or beers, usually they say "wine tasting" or "beer tasting" as a hobby, not "drinking"."Drinking" as a hobby implies "getting drunk", as in he doesn't particularly care about what he's drinking wrt flavor or quality.But it was a brief message. It's very possible I am misinterpreting it completely.

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BTW, schraf, what's up with your quoting? I noticed the other day the weird doubling--first the partial quote without qs box, then the full quote inside the qs box.

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Speed kills....accuracy.

Have you ever gone for several months without drinking at all?

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I think I did, back in the 80's. If you are suggesting, Schraf, that I would have been a better person, or a happier person, or a more accomplished person, if I had not drank, no doubt you are right.

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So, when you told us all of your alcohol consumption habits, and I observed that it was not all that surprising that you thought that life had no meaning, then I wasn't very far off the mark, was I?

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But you must realize that people are what they are.

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No. People are, in most cases regarding behavior, what they choose to be.

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I could no more change my habits than I could change the color of my eyes.

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That's bullshit. People change their habits all the time.Life is full of choices.

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I have many flaws. Drinking is but one of them. I have gone my way.

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Life is full of choices.

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In my twenties I was irresponsible, in my thirties and forties I was a hard worker, and now in my fifties I am steady. I have accomplished, of course, nothing of value, but I did try (to invoke Jar).

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And I am not going to give up.

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Are you an alchoholic?

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I disagree. It's possible to camouflage one's nature. It's not possible to change it.

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I don't remember mentioning anything about changing people's "nature".I was talking about changing behavior.We each make many choices throughout every day, most small, but some are of great importance and impact.Anyone can change their behavior if they choose to.

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People are born with tendencies toward certain types of behavior.

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Yes, I agree, especially with regards to the tendency to become addicted to alcohol and other drugs.However, biology is not destiny with regards to behavior.We all choose to follow those "tendencies" or not, every day.We choose.

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Everyone has their flaws.

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Of course. But nowhere is it written that you cannot change your flawed behaviors if you want to.This message has been edited by schrafinator, 11-24-2005 09:25 AM

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So people chose to be homosexuals?

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I'm sure that some do. Most probably don't but some do.

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My dad has a friend that if he takes one drink he ends up binging. Has no control to stop.

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Can he learn to take one drink?

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No, probably not. However, he can learn to stay away from alcohol altogether.The choice he makes is to not drink.

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besides. you judging him ecause of his drinking habits is so puritan. i'm a heavy drinker, but i still keep a job and go to school and live well enough.

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Yeah, and you don't come across like a very happy person, either, and neither does robin.You both seem depressed and negative a lot of the time.

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values are values. if someone can't press his values of gays being chosen sinners then you can't press yours of drinkers being the same.

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I never said he was a sinner. I just observed that his philosophy of "life having no meaning" made more sense to me after he told us of his heavy drinking.Also, he's the one saying that he has no power over his own behavior.

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If you say so. That's not what I see when I look at the world, however.

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I currently work with at least 10 recovering drug and/or alcohol addicts. I probably know around 20.My father is an alcoholic who quit. My brother in law is an alcoholic who quit. Both of them were using alcohol to "treat" their depression.I am surrounded by many people who decided to change their flawed behavior. They wanted to, or were ordered to by the courts, but I don't know any of them who actually regret deciding to do the work to change their behavior.

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not all heavy drinkers are alcoholics.

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True.

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there is a difference defined by need.

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I think that alcoholism is defined a bit broader than that. You can be physically addicted to alcohol, and you can also be emotionally dependent upon it, use it as a way to "self-medicate" one's emotional pain, or as a way to calm insecurity and give a sense of confidence.It is a psychoactive drug that makes you feel euphoria and confidence. If one likes that feeling much more than being in one's own sober skin, so much so that one tries to feel that way as much as one can, then I'd say you have a problem with alcohol as an emotional crutch.

yes, maybe. But euphoria and confidence is the typical feeling described.At least, by happy drunks.

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i did not define need as physical. but either way, your distinction is invalid.
chemical dependence is a result of the brain's demand for a specific reaction caused by the substance. this results in both physical and emotional reactions.

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Well, you are defining "alcoholic" as only someone with a physical addiction. That is not how it's defined by most psychological or health care agencies. There often is a physical craving for alcohol, but there doesn't have to be. Here's some definitions I found: linklinklinklink